


hope i don't fall in love with you.

by ediscn



Category: Happiest Season (2020)
Genre: Angst, Body Worship, Enemies to Lovers, F/F, Internalized Homophobia, Oral Sex, Porn With Plot, Praise Kink, Slurs, Smut, Vaginal Fingering
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-06
Updated: 2020-12-30
Packaged: 2021-03-09 19:41:45
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,265
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27921691
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ediscn/pseuds/ediscn
Summary: sloane has a lot hiding beneath the surface, and it seems riley loves to dig. title inspired by "hope i don't fall in love with you" by tom waits.
Relationships: Sloane Caldwell/Riley Johnson
Comments: 7
Kudos: 93





	1. 1

**Author's Note:**

> leave it to the sapphics to take two characters who interacted ONCE and ship them. we got all those queer characters and simped for the homophobe.

riley had come to this bar often, but rarely alone. if she didn't bring a girl with her, she would strike up  
conversation with some girl she met there. however, she never imagined that she would find sloane caldwell sitting at a table in the back corner all by herself. riley raises an eyebrow, then makes her way to the lonesome brunette.

"well, i never thought i'd see you here." she says, making sloane look up.

sloane shrugs, "a drink's a drink."

riley tries not to roll her eyes at the bitchy tone of sloane's voice. instead, she decides to piss her off more by sitting down at her table, and then it's sloane's turn to fight the urge to roll her eyes, only she doesn't fight it, she just rolls them.

"how are you?" riley asks, somehow not being able to keep herself from being concerned about the woman sitting across the table from her.

"good." sloane says, then takes another swig of her drink.

"that's good." riley says with a nod as she tries to think of what to say next.

however, sloane doesn't let her, "do you want something, or...?"

the abrasive tone of sloane's voice makes riley wish she had never approached her.

riley shakes her head, "no, i just wanted to make sure everything was alright. i heard about...i just wanted to make sure you were okay."

"well, i'm just fine." sloane's tone goes a tad bit cold, "i'm surprised you even wanna talk to me after christmas eve."

riley decides to play dumb, "what do you mean?"

however, this doesn't work with sloane, who rolls her eyes, "you know what i'm talking about. i just figured that because you're a...well you know, you would be mad about me outing harper."

a small chuckle escapes riley, and a smile makes its way across her lips, "yeah, that was pretty bitchy of you."

there's a lot more riley could say about that one, but she decides against it.

sloane raises an eyebrow, "what's so funny?"

riley tries to drop her smile, shaking her head, "nothing, it's nothing."

"no, tell me." sloane nearly demands.

"fine, you wanna know so bad? i think you're an immature, arrogant bitch with a superiority complex who pounces on any opportunity to try to cover up her own shit by exposing someone else."

sloane's jaw drops, clearly offended by riley's statement, "how fucking dare you?"

"what? you asked. it's not harper and abby's fault that your marriage is fucked, but you had to take it out on them, because that's what you do, sloane. you take all of your fucking issues, which might i add are a lot for someone who claims to be so fucking perfect..."

riley is cut off when sloane grabs her drink off of the table and throws it on riley.

riley looks at her, shocked for a second, then forces a laugh and shakes her head, "yeah, real fucking mature."

sloane, also shocked by her actions, is staring at riley, her baby blue hues wide, but she still doesn't apologize. instead, she closes her mouth and makes her expression stern, almost as if to say, "i regret nothing."

however, her actions say differently when she follows the furious brunette into the bathroom. riley grabs some paper towels, beginning to wipe the excess drink from her black blazer.

"wait, let me help." sloane says, also grabbing paper towels.

"no, i got it." riley says, wanting to be rid of sloane.

however, as usual, sloane doesn't listen, and she continues cleaning the other woman's clothes.

there's tension in the air, and there's nothing that riley hates more, so as sloane gently wipes across her chest, riley decides to try to make a joke to try to break the ice.

"damn, at least but a girl dinner first."

however, she doesn't earn a laugh from sloane. instead she gets a scoff and a soft "ew". riley chuckles to herself, shaking her head once more.

"i think it's gone, but you see, the trick is to not throw your fucking drink on me in the first place." riley says in a faux sugary tone.

sloane rolls her eyes once more, "maybe if you weren't such a bitch."

"i was calling you out for being a bitch! you asked for my opinion, so i gave it." riley fires back.

"well, i'll never be doing that ever again. in fact, we just won't talk ever again."

"works fine for me. now just let go of my blazer so that i can go."

sloane looks down to see her hand still on the other woman's chest, but she doesn't move it. instead, she just looks back up at riley.

riley rolls her eyes, then begins to grab sloane's hand to pull it off of her, but sloane uses her other arm to stop her. riley's dark brown eyes meet sloane's light blue ones, an eyebrow raised, curious as to why she won't let her leave. however, her question is soon answered when suddenly sloane's lips are on hers, and then, much her surprise, she's kissing her back.

then her tongue is exploring the inside of the other woman's mouth, and sloane still hasn't pulled away. riley wants to be shocked, but she isn't in the slightest. woah, an uptight straight woman happens to actually like women! there's a new one, not.

sloane has released her grip on riley's wrist, allowing her hand to go to the side of sloane's face, meanwhile, sloane's hands are on riley's shoulders as she keeps passionately kissing her.

suddenly riley pushes sloane up against a nearby sink, then her hands begin to trail down sloane's body, stopping to grope and caress her boobs as she lowers her kisses to the needy woman's neck, careful not to leave any marks, though she's very tempted. she finds sloane's sweet spot and gently sucks it, earning a soft moan from the formerly uptight woman. riley smirks against sloane's skin at this, then pulls away and smiles up at sloane as her hands settle on her thighs. she begins to lean her head down to kiss them, but is stopped when sloane says something.

"jesus, you're not about to fuck me here. what kind of whore do you think i am?"

riley smirks once more, "well, where do you suggest i fuck you?"

sloane suppresses a smile of excitement as her core throbs at the sound of the question, much to her dismay.

"take me to your house, you fucking imbecile. can you at least try to be a gentleman?"

riley chuckles, "oh, there's nothing man about me, baby."

sloane scoffs, trying to ignore the fact that aching with desire for a woman.

"but you have a point. let's go to my place, i'll treat you like a lady." riley says, extending a bent arm for sloane to interlock hers with.

sloane rolls her eyes, but links arms with riley anyways. riley walks out of the bar, leads sloane to her car, and even opens the passenger door for her, then closes it once she's in the car. the entire drive home riley has one hand on the wheel and the other on sloane's thigh, gently rubbing it in a successful attempt to drive sloane crazy.

once they reach riley's house they go straight to the bedroom. they both take off their jackets and throw them onto the floor, then their lips crash together once again. one of riley's hands grabs the side of sloane's as she runs a hand through riley's soft, long dark brown hair.

riley pushes sloane onto the bed, then instantly gets on top of her, pulling off her shirt before kissing the soft skin of neck again. sloane sits up a bit as riley's hands reach around to remove her bra, pulling it off and then pushing her back to a laying position. her fingers toy with sloane's left nipple as her mouth finds the right one, her tongue exploring the sensitive area.

"jesus, just fuck me already." sloane moans out.

riley removes her mouth from the desperate woman's breast and pulls her pants off. she then places a hand on her still-clothed core, feeling just how bad sloane wants it. however, that's not convincing her enough.

"how bad do you want it, baby?" riley asks.

sloane sits up a bit and raises an eyebrow, "huh?"

however, her stubborn act doesn't stand a chance when riley places a soft kiss over the damp, vulnerable area between her legs.

"so bad. i need it so bad. please." sloane pleads.

riley smirks, then moves the crotch of sloane's black panties to the side and sticks a finger in sloane, eliciting a sharp inhale from the surprisingly submissive woman. riley almost instantly adds a second finger, then starts thrusting and curling them into sloane. she then moves her tongue to toy with her clit, looking up at sloane as she did so, loving the expressions of pleasure on her beautiful face.

sloane's mouth is hanging open, gasps and moans escaping it, not that she's trying very hard to contain them. her mesmerizing blue eyes trying so hard not to close as she watches the brunette between her legs eat her out as those dominate dark brown eyes meet her temporarily submissive ones.

riley can't help but feel hypnotized by the way sloane looks right now. she's making her feel this good, and she fucking loves it.

she removes her tongue from sloane's clit for a second to acknowledge it, "aw, look at you, baby girl. it feel good?"

"y-yes." sloane answers in a moan.

riley chuckles, "yeah, baby. you like how i'm fucking you, don't you?"

"mhm." sloane replies.

riley can tell by the way the other woman's walls are clenching around her fingers that her comments are bringing sloane closer to the edge, so she decides to get in one more before sloane finishes.

"guess you're not as straight as you though, huh?"

then sloane climax washes over her, submerging her more than it ever has, her legs shaking as riley keeps pumping her fingers, helping her ride out her orgasm.

then, maybe stronger than her orgasm had, shame begins to wash over the spent woman as riley's last comment rings in her ears. riley kisses sloane's cheek, but sloane doesn't let her kiss her on the mouth. instead, she uses all of her strength to stand on her weak, wobbly legs.

"so, is it my turn now?" riley asks with a smirk.

however sloane is gathering her clothes and getting dressed, "no, i'm going home. this was a mistake."

riley rolls her eyes, though she's not surprised, "well, alright. this was fun, especially for you, i'd assume."

sloane doesn't speak again until she's dressed and about to walk out. she turns around in the doorway and looks at riley, her competitive nature kicking in, "just so you know, if i would have went down on you, you would have came so much harder than i did."

"then why don't you come over here and prove it?"

"because i don't need approval from dykes." sloane says, her tone cold and sharp, cutting riley a bit.

riley softly nods to herself and lays back on her bed. it seems that she's always disappointed with sloane's actions, but she's never surprised.


	2. 2

a few nights later riley is sitting at home alone when her phone lights up with an extremely vague text from sloane. 

"eric has the kids tonight." 

however, it takes riley no time to decode it, knowing that sloane wants her to come over. she knows she shouldn't, yet she still makes her way over to her house. 

when riley arrives sloane answers the door in an untied rope, which she is holding closed. this draws riley's attention, but she feels the need to check on her before they proceed. 

"are you okay?" 

sloane rolls her eyes, "you know that's not why i wanted you to come over. upstairs." 

they go up to sloane's room, but something catches riley's eyes: a full-length mirror in the corner of the room. she gets an idea and walks over to it, sloane following behind.

"what are you doing?" sloane asks.

"get in front of me." riley says in a slightly demanding tone. 

sloane does as she's told, and as soon as she stands in between riley and the mirror, she feels soft lips on her neck, and she pulls off her robe. 

riley pulls her mouth away, gasping softly out of amazement, "fuck, you're so beautiful." 

her hands find their way to sloane's breasts, fondling them softly, her mouth finding its way back to the soft skin of her neck. sloane's soft pink lips part slightly as a moan escapes them. she closes her big blue eyes, and riley thinks of another idea. she takes one hand off of sloane's breasts and goes straight to her core, rubbing circles on her clit with her thumb. 

she watches as sloane inhales sharply, louder moans beginning to exit her. riley shoves two fingers into sloane, instantly pumping and curling them inside of her. 

it's not long before sloane is moving her hips to meet the rhythm of riley's fingers. her eyes are still squeezed shut, leaning into the embrace of riley's free arm. 

riley leans in and whispers lowly into sloane's ear, "look in the mirror, baby." 

sloane softly opens her eyes and looks into the glass. she can't help but notice that while she is completely naked, riley is still completely clothed. she wishes riley were naked too, and the self hatred in her nearly bubbles over at the thought, but she's too invested in how good riley is making her feel. however, then riley says something that makes it a little harder to ignore. 

"look at you, getting fucked by a dyke. i guess that would have to make you a bit of one too, wouldn't it?" 

sloane tries not to acknowledge the comment, and closes her eyes once more, focusing on the wonderful sensation between her legs, but then riley stops moving her fingers. sloane eyes fly open as she whines softly, continue to move her hips in an attempt to make riley start again. however, riley just pulls her fingers out of sloane completely. 

"come on, say it and i'll keep fucking you." 

but sloane can't. she locks eyes with riley in the mirror, silently pleading with her. 

riley smirks, "go on, baby. i wanna hear you say it." 

"i...i..." sloane tries, but she can't. 

riley softly nods to herself and let's go of sloane, making the vulnerable woman oddly emotional. she's never cared about riley leaving before, so why now? does she really need to finish that bad? riley turns to leave, but sloane puts a hand on her shoulder, stopping riley and surprising herself. 

"wait. i don't know what i am, but i know that i need you so bad right now. please, riley."

riley feels a tinge of guilt as she hears the pleading tone in sloane's voice. she can't force sloane to label herself when she's not ready, but she can still have a bit of resentment towards her for what she said the other night. 

riley sighs and sits down on sloane's bed, "alright, but you were still a bad girl, fucking yourself with my fingers after i stopped moving them. i can't let that one slide." 

sloane's eyes widen, "riley, please. i need to finish so bad. i was so close." 

an idea hits riley, sending a smirk across her face, "alright, but i'm not touching you anymore tonight. because you love fucking yourself on me so bad, you can ride my thigh." 

sloane felt as if her head was swimming. what riley had said was so hot, and she wanted it so bad, but she also hated herself for wanting it so bad. 

"b-but your pants." sloane says, not wanting to leave a mess. 

riley chuckles softly, "dont even worry about it, baby. i'll take care of it." 

sloane nods, and hesitantly approaches riley. she straddles riley's thigh, moaning as it comes in contact with her dripping core, and she's quite certain she's already ruined riley's pants.

however, riley doesn't seem to mind as she gently brushes sloane's hair off of her face, looking into her eyes, "aw, so sensitive." 

sloane begins to grind on riley's thigh, slow at first, and then faster as she finds the pace she needs. riley watches in awe as sloane does this. she begins to pepper soft kisses all over the moaning brunette's face, but avoids her lips. however, this is stopped when sloane throws her head back. 

"jesus, i'm gonna come." 

"go on, baby. come for me." 

all it takes is a few more grinds, and sloane comes hard against the other woman's thigh, panting as she does. once she's done she falls limp against riley's chest. 

riley softly strokes her hair and whispers into her ear, "you did so good, baby."

riley expected to be kicked out as soon as sloane orgasmed, but here she is, laying on riley's chest, letting her stroke her hair. it's a beautiful moment, or at least riley thinks so. 

"i hate that i loved that." sloane says softly. 

"gee, thanks." riley says sarcastically. 

"i'm just not like you, riley. i'm not a dyke." 

riley rolls her eyes, "okay, get up. it's time for me to go." 

sloane stands up, and she can't help but notice the huge wet patch she had left on riley's pants leg. her cheeks go red with embarrassment. however, riley is too busy standing up to notice.

"i'm gonna head out. you should probably shower, get the dyke off of you or whatever." 

and then, there it is again: the feeling of not wanting riley to leave. sloane didn't understand it. she had already come, so what more did she want from her? 

"wait, don't go!" the words shot out of sloane like word vomit, surprising both brunettes. 

riley turns around, an eyebrow raised as sloane tries to think of what to say next.

"let me lend you some pants, and i'll wash those." 

riley shakes her head and laughs softly, "it's fine. i'm going straight home, and besides, you aren't the first time girl that has came on my thigh. however, you do seem to be the first straight one." 

sloane froze at the mockery in riley's voice, but she didn't address it. instead, she tries to think of how to ask riley to stay. 

"okay, but it's late. let's take a shower, and then we'll go to sleep. you can take my bed, or the couch." 

riley let's out a sigh, but then nods her head, "okay, sloane. whatever you want."


	3. 3

riley begins to take off her clothes, and sloane tries not to watch. despite riley fucking her twice, she had never seen her undressed. she gets glimpses of riley as she takes off her shirt, throwing it on the bathroom floor. then she unbuttons her pants and begins to take them off. 

"damn, caldwell , you sure do love to mess up my clothes." riley says, pulling sloane from her thoughts. 

sloane chuckles softly, looking down at the floor, "i guess so." 

riley smirks, "you're allowed to look, you know." 

sloane nods her head, then watches as riley pulls her pants down her long, tan legs, then kicking them off. 

"uh, i'll take those." sloane says nervously, reaching out for them. 

riley hands them to her, and sloane puts them into the clothes hamper, careful not to touch the wet spot she had made. 

"if i had known that doing that would have embarrassed you so much, i wouldn't have suggested it." 

sloane quickly shakes her head, "no, don't worry about it. it was...it's okay." 

she liked it. she doesn't want to admit it, but she really liked it, and every time she thinks about it she wants to do it again. 

riley then removes her bra and panties, leaving her completely naked, standing in front of sloane for her to admire, and as much as sloane would hate to admit it, she is admiring. 

sloane turns to set the water temperature, going with a warmer one, and then the two get in together. riley gently pushes sloane into the stream of water, and sloane can't help but relax her body as the warmth runs over her body. riley runs her fingers through sloane's just-below shoulder length light brown hair, making sure it all gets wet. then she grabs sloane's shampoo, softly lathering the older woman's hair with it. 

sloane feels warm, and not just from the heat of the water. she feels her heart getting warmer and warmer with each gentle brush against her scalp by riley's fingers. she looks at riley's face, and sees her eyes so focused on her, on taking care of her, and it sends a delightful feeling through her, though she fights the urge to feel ashamed of it. 

"tilt your head back a bit for me." riley says softly.

sloane closes her eyes and tilts her head back into the water so that riley can rinse her hair. once riley is done she lifts sloane's head.

"okay, you can open your eyes." 

sloane does, looking straight at riley, and riley can't help but think how beautiful she looks like this: her hair wet, her makeup rinsed off. here she was looking sloane right in the eyes, and usually that would be daunting, but this time it isn't. it's soft, it's caring, it's even comforting. 

riley realizes that she may be seeing sloane in her purest form, no 10 foot tall wall surrounding her, no piercing glances, no smart remarks. she is here, she is letting riley wash her hair, and look into her eyes, and riley is fighting the strongest urge to kiss her, and as much as sloane hates it, she is fighting that same urge. 

riley grabs a loofah and some soap, and begins to gently soap up sloane's body, starting at her neck and shoulders, and gradually working her way down. there's nothing that riley wants to do more than to kiss every inch of sloane's soft, fair skin and tell her how perfect she is. 

as riley's eyes are fixated on washing the older woman's body, sloane sees this as a perfect opportunity to study every feature of riley, and to take it all in. riley is fully aware of the way sloane's eyes are set on her, but she doesn't mention it, not wanting to embarrass her any more for the night. 

once sloane's entire body is covered riley detaches the shower head and rinses off all of the soap. once she done, her eyes go back to sloane's face and she smiles. 

"alright, you're all good. i figured i'd let you wash your face." 

"do you want me to wash you first?" sloane asks.

"no, i've got it." 

sloane tries her best to conceal a frown, "are you sure? i really don't mind. actually, i...i don't mind." 

sloane is far beyond not minding. she wants to touch riley so bad, and she's disgusted with herself for it. she wants to do far more than just wash riley, so much more. 

riley shakes her head, "no, sloane. until you stop seeing me as some dirty little dyke secret, you can't touch me." 

sloane goes to protest, but stops, just looking at the shower floor, watching the water go down the drain. 

riley let's out a sigh, hating seeing the other brunette so disappointed, "help me wash my hair, okay?" 

sloane nods, switching positions so that riley is now under the water. 

once sloane is finished washing riley's hair, riley opens her eyes, and there they are again, looking into each other's eyes. sloane leans in slightly.

"c-can i do something?" she asks, her tone unbelievably soft. 

riley is shocked, having no idea that sloane was capable of speaking in such a gentle tone. she simply nods, not wanting to disrupt the moment.

sloane leans in and plants a soft kiss on riley's forehead, then smiles at her.

"i'm gonna let you finish up, okay?" 

riley nods, and sloane gets out of the shower. 

as riley finishes up, sloane goes to her bedroom and puts on an oversized t-shirt and shorts, then gets out the same thing for riley and brings them to the bathroom.

"i'm putting you some clothes on the counter, okay?" sloane says.

"okay, thanks." riley says over the sound of the water. 

sloane makes her way back to her room, and a few minutes later riley joins her. 

"hey, yo..." sloane starts. 

"do want me to just go home?" riley cuts her off.

sloane's smile drops, "no, of course not." 

"are you sure? it's just tonight's been a lot, and i don't want to bother you." 

"riley, if you were bothering me, you would know, trust me." sloane sighs, preparing herself for a confession, "earlier, as you were getting up to leave i felt so fucking sad, and to be completely honest, i don't know why. i don't know if i really like you, or girls in general. maybe if i'm just lonely, or if i'm trying to one-up harper, and i know that i can't expect you to stick around until i figure that out, but i hoped that i could at least get you to stay tonight." 

riley stays silent for a second, taking in everything that sloane had just said. then, she nods and responds with a simple, "okay, ill stay tonight." 

"and i understand if you don't want to share the bed, and that's fine. i just need you here." 

"we can share the bed. i don't have any problem being close with you, caldwell, hence the reason i came here tonight in the first place." 

sloane jokingly rolls her eyes, "okay, don't be a perv." 

riley chuckles softly, "right, sorry, sorry." 

the two then get into bed. riley lays on her back, then sloane slides over to her, snuggling against her and laying her head on riley's chest. 

"is this okay?" she asks in the same soft tone from before. 

"yeah, it's perfect." 

the two stay silent for a minute before sloane talks again, "hey, riley?" 

"yes, sloane?"

sloane frowns, "i'm sorry i'm such a bitch to you. you were right the other night; it's not anyone else's fault that i'm going through shit." 

riley kisses sloane's forehead, "it's okay, i get it. you wanna talk about it?" 

"maybe another time. let's just go to sleep." 

"okay, baby, that works for me. goodnight." 

sloane can't keep herself from smiling at the pet name, and her excitement immensely outweighs her self hatred. 

"good night, riley."


	4. 4

riley wakes up first, her and sloane's bodies still intertwined. she goes to move, but finds she can't, for sloane has her arms wrapped tightly around riley's waist, and it's not just that she is being careful not to disturb her, it's just that sloane has a death grip on riley. 

riley looks at sloane to see if she looks distressed, like she might be having a bad dream, but she looks perfectly peaceful. riley admires this for a second, taking it all in, but as she does she can't help but wonder why sloane is holding her so tight? does she want riley there when she wakes up? does she just want riley there? 

riley is too focused on sloane to hear the door being unlocked downstairs, then the sound of two pairs of feet making their way upstairs. then, there they are, sloane's twins standing in the doorway. riley expects them to stay something, but they just stand there, staring. 

riley begins shaking sloane, "sloane, you should probably wake up." 

sloane opens her big blue eyes, and smiles at riley, "good morning." 

riley wants to appreciate the warm smile, but she's a bit too preoccupied, "your kids are here." 

sloane raises an eyebrow, "no they're not. why would they...?" 

but then she sits up and sees them, gasping.

"daddy dropped us off." matilda says.

"yeah, he said he had something to do." magnus adds. 

sloane sighs, and then she nods, "okay, alright. have you had breakfast yet?" 

the twins shake their heads.

"okay, then why don't you go downstairs and..." sloane starts. 

"who are you?" matilda asks riley. 

sloane struggles to answer, so riley swoops in to save her, "i'm your mommy's friend, riley. we had a little movie night, and then we fell asleep." 

the twins seemed satisfied with riley's answer, making sloane smile. 

"okay, let's all go downstairs." sloane says, getting out of bed. 

the kids go on, but i stop sloane as she's walking out of her bedroom. 

"i think i should probably head out." 

sloane rolls her eyes, "wow, leaving before breakfast?" 

"i just don't want it to be weird, you know, with your kids..." riley starts.

sloane expression softens as she walks over to riley, then places her hands on her shoulders, "it's not gonna be weird. just come downstairs, we'll have breakfast, and then you can leave, okay?" 

riley smiles at sloane's softness, "okay." 

"great." sloane says with a smile, then places a soft kiss on riley's forehead. 

as riley walks downstairs she can't help but think of how much she loves this softer side of sloane, a side she didn't think existed. she also can't help but notice how sloane keeps putting off her leaving, first asking riley to stay for a shower, then for the night, and now for breakfast. 

when the two of them enter the kitchen the twins are seated on stools at the kitchen counter. sloane goes straight to the cupboards for cereal. 

"need any help?" riley asks. 

"yes, actually. pour the kids some juice." sloane instructs. 

as riley is getting the juice from the refrigerator sloane sets out four cups: one for each of the twins, one for riley, and one for herself. riley grabs the cups, brings them over to the counter, and begins to pour. she fills two of the cups and sets them down in front of magnus and matilda. she then pours her and sloane some, then puts the juice back in the refrigerator. then, she begins to take a sip of her juice. 

"mommy, the next time you and riley have a movie night, can i come?" matilda asks.

riley almost spits out her juice, and she can tell that sloane is equally amused as their eyes meet. 

"we'll see, sweetie." sloane says as she brings two bowls of cereal over to the table for the twins.

"i assume you know how to make your own cereal." sloane snidely remarks. 

riley chuckles softly, "yes, i do. sit down and i'll make yours too." 

"no, you don't have to." 

"come on, sit down, ba..." riley's eyes go wide at her slip-up, "...sloane. i've got it." 

sloane's eyes are also wide, her baby blue hues shooting daggers at riley. riley decides it's best not to say anything else, and goes to make their cereal. luckily, magnus and matilda didn't seem to notice what had just happened.

there's silence as the four of them eat their cereal, but it's short-lived. 

"mommy, is your friend gonna be at grandma and grandpa's tomorrow?" magnus asks.

tomorrow is new year's eve, and the caldwell's are throwing a party. 

sloane looks at riley, unsure of the answer. 

"i'm planning on it, unless i get called into work." riley answers.

"what's your job?" the small boy questions.

"i'm a doctor." 

riley hears a gasp from matilda, making her look over to her.

"i wanna be a doctor!" she says excitedly. 

riley smiles at her, "that is so cool! what do you wanna be when you grow up, magnus?" 

"hmmm." he thinks, "i wanna be...a race car driver!" 

"ah, very cool!" riley says enthusiastically. 

sloane can't help but smile, her heart melting as she's watching riley interact with the kids. matilda is asking riley a million questions about her job, but riley is answering each of them patiently. 

soon, they're all done with their breakfast. 

"okay, i should probably head home." riley says, standing up from her stool, "thank you guys for having me for breakfast." 

then, much to riley's surprise, the kids get off of their stools, walk over to her, and hug her goodbye. sloane smiles at the three of them. 

"okay, kids. i'm gonna talk to riley for a second. you two go upstairs and brush your teeth." 

the twins say goodbye to riley one more time, then head upstairs. once they're gone, sloane walks closer to riley.

"thank you for being so good with them." she says. 

"it was no problem. they're so adorable." riley replies. 

sloane thinks on her next words very carefully, but decides to say them anyways, "i really hope you can make it tomorrow." 

riley smiles, "yeah, i do too." 

"well, if you can, i'll see you tomorrow." 

"and if i can't?" 

sloane's smile drops, "we'll see, okay?" 

riley frowns, "you breaking up with me, caldwell?" 

sloane goes to respond, but riley stops her, "it was a joke. i know we weren't ever 'together'. i just thought, maybe..." riley stops herself, "whatever, i've gotta get going." 

riley goes to leave, but sloane puts a hand on her shoulder, "riley, wait. i don't know what this is, but i don't let just anyone have breakfast with my kids. just know that, okay?" 

"okay. i really have to go, though." riley smirks, "let me know when you've washed my pants, okay?" 

sloane feels her cheeks growing red, and she looks down at her feet, "okay, will do."


	5. 5

sloane was talking to to harper and abby, or at least she was trying to. she was too busy looking for riley to pay them any attention. 

"are you looking for someone, sloane?" harper questions. 

"are you looking for your friend that spent the night?" magnus asks innocently. 

"her name is riley." matilda corrects her brother. 

harper and abby shoot one another a puzzling look, but they don't say anything just yet. 

"why don't you two go play, okay?" sloane says, encouraging her kids to leave. 

"so, riley spent the night?" harper asks once the kids are gone, "since when are you two friends?" 

sloane rolls her eyes, "i don't know, harper. we just are." 

however, her annoyed expression faded as she sees riley across the room. she's wearing a grey pantsuit and a white blouse, her brown hair down and flowing free as always. she looks beautiful, sloane thinks. she can feel her heart skip a beat as her baby blue eyes meet riley's dark brown ones, and she barely even curses herself for the feeling. she abandons harper and abby and makes her way over to riley. 

she can't help but smile, "you made it!" 

riley smiles back and nods, "yeah, i did." 

however, sloane can tell there's something off with her, and as hard as she tries not to, she cares very deeply about it. 

"is everything alright?" 

"yeah, i'm great, just surprised that you're allowing yourself to be seen talking to a dyke." 

sloane's smile fades as she feels a fairly new and foreign feeling. 

the feeling was remorse. sloane was feeling bad for the way she had treated riley, and that horrified her a bit. 

so she rolls her eyes in annoyance, "what, like people are gonna think i'm gay just because i'm talking to you?" 

riley shrugs, "i guess not. i just know how you are about things like that." 

and the more sloane thought about it, as she feels abby and harper's eyes on her, she begins to realize the truth behind riley's assumption.

"yeah, you're right." she says, then softly adds, "can we talk later, with less people around?" 

riley takes a deep breath, then nods, "yeah, of course." 

sloane watches as riley walks away, and she can't help but wish that it were still the other night, riley stroking her hair as she falls asleep. her head laid on riley's chest, listening to her heartbeat. 

"i don't even care about the sex." sloane thinks to herself, and it's a troubling thought, but why? why is it that it's more concerning to want to spend the night in another woman's soft, caring embrace than it would be if she just wanted another woman's mouth on her pussy? 

sloane snaps back to reality, remembering that she's in a room full of people. she can't think about this here, or at least not without beginning to cry and embarrassing herself. she leaves the room, slipping into a nearby cleaning closet. 

"hi." a small but enthusiastic voice says. 

sloane tries not to tell as she jumps back, "jesus christ, jane." 

"i'm sorry, i'm sorry." jane quickly says. 

"what are you doing in here?" sloane questions, not trying to hide the annoyance in her voice in the slightest. 

"it's just really loud out there, and there's a lot of people, so i thought i'd just chill here for a bit." jane says, her unfaltering smile remaining on her face. 

sloane nods to show she understands, but doesn't leave the closet. 

"why are you here? you usually love these things.” jane questions, concerned. 

"yeah, well, i guess i'm changing a lot lately." sloane thinks aloud. 

"yeah, i've noticed that. what's going on? wait, don't tell me...you're dying. wait, no...you're pregnant. no, no, you..." 

sloane cuts her off, "jane, no, no." 

jane stops talking and looks at sloane, waiting for further explanation. 

"i-i think i found someone." 

jane furrows her brow, "okay, but that's good, right?" 

"it should be! i mean, this person seems to be anything i could ever dream of, but there's a problem." 

"....you're pregnant?" jane questions, clearly confused. 

sloane rolls her eyes once more, "jane, no!" 

"then i don't see what the problem is." 

"the problem is that it's a woman!" sloane says way louder than she intended. 

well, she intended to never say it at all, but either way, she definitely said that way too loud. jane's confused expression fades, but sloane doesn't let her get a word in just yet. 

"it was just supposed to be a one night stand, but then i was inviting her back over. we showered together, and it wasn't even a sexual thing, she just washed my hair and my body, and was so gentle and nurturing, and then i fell asleep in her arms, and then the next morning she had breakfast with me and my kids, and she was so good with them. i didn't mean to like her, i swear i didn't..." 

jane cuts her off, "you don't have to explain yourself to me." 

"but, jane, i..." 

"nope, nope. i don't wanna hear it." jane puts her fingers in her ears, "la la la la la." 

"are you serious right now?" 

jane removes her fingers from her ears, "sorry, sorry. it's just that, you don't need to explain why you like this woman. you do like her, don't you?" 

sloane takes a deep breath, "yes, so much, and it terrifies me." 

"it's nothing to be afraid of." 

"i don't even know what my sexuality is anymore." 

"and that's okay. fuck labels." 

sloane's eyes widen at hearing her sister drop the f-bomb, "jane!" 

"labels do not matter. all that matters is that you like this woman. does she know?" 

sloane shakes her head, "no, she doesn't, and i keep pushing her away because i'm a self loathing bitch who can't accept i like her." 

"well, you've gotta stop that." jane says plainly. 

"it's not that simple." sloane argues. 

"well, make it that simple. if you want this girl, you have got to show it. not to everyone just yet, but at least to her." 

sloane nods, "yeah, you're right." 

"well what are you still doing in this closet? go get your girl!" jane says in an attempt to encourage sloane. 

sloane turns to leave, but then stops, "so...you're okay with this, right?" 

"oh my god, of course." 

"please don't tell anyone about this." sloane pleads. 

"your secret is completely safe with me." jane says before pulling sloane into a hug, "mom and dad are gonna be surprised that I ended up being the only straight child." 

sloane pulls away and looks at jane with a stern expression, "jane." 

"i won't tell them, i won't tell them!" jane says. 

as soon as sloane goes back to the party, she begins to look for riley. when her attempt is unsuccessful, she goes to harper. 

"harper, have you seen riley?" 

"yeah, she's actually just leaving." harper says. 

"what?" sloane questions, but doesn't stick around for a response. 

she rushes outside to look for riley more, and spots get getting in her car. 

"riley!" she calls out. 

riley looks up, seeing sloane. however, she doesn't walk any closer, so sloane walks to riley's car. 

"y-you're leaving?" sloane asks. 

riley nods, "yeah, i am. i was going to tell you goodbye, but i couldn't find you." 

"yeah, i was in the closet." sloane says. 

"trust me, i know." riley replies dryly. 

sloane rolls her eyes, "no, i was in an actual closet, thank you very much." 

riley raises an eyebrow, "and why is that?" 

sloane takes a deep breath, and then she confesses, "i realized how much i like you." 

"wait, let me make sure i'm hearing this right: you realized you like me, so you hid in a closet." 

"well, i wasn't just in there. i told my sister about it." 

"you told harper you like me?" 

sloane shakes her head, "god, no. jane, i told jane about it, and i'm actually really glad i did." 

"and why is that?" riley questions. 

"because when i realized i like you it scared me, and not because of you, but because i didn't know what that meant for me, sexuality wise. jane helped me see that it doesn't matter, all that matters is that i like you, and i can't keep pushing you away." 

"hm. jane sounds pretty smart." 

"you think so?" 

riley nods, "it was selfish of me to try to push a label on you the other night. i don't care about that, i just want you to love yourself for who you are." 

sloane feels a blush spreading across her cheeks, "really?" 

"absolutely." 

riley pulls sloane close to her, then plants a small, soft kiss on her forehead before looking in her eyes, "we can do this however you want, okay, baby?" 

"okay. well, for starters..." 

she kisses riley's soft lips, then pulls away with a smile. 

riley smiles back, "alright, let's get you back inside. you must be freezing." 

sloane had been in such a hurry to catch riley that she hadn't grabbed a jacket, so here she was, out in the cold weather in a sleeveless dress. 

however, sloane was too happy to acknowledge it, "i'm fine." 

"no, come on. i can't have you getting sick on me." 

the two of them head back inside, and it's not long before the party is over. the twins fell asleep on the couch, and sloane doesn’t want to wake them, so she carries magnus to the car while riley carries matilda. 

"you wanna come over tonight?" sloane asks. 

riley didn't have to think twice about it, "yeah, of course. someone's gotta help you get those little angels inside." 

sloane smiles, "great. i'll meet you there." 

sloane starts her car, and riley walks to hers, and they both head over to sloane's place.


End file.
